Emerson James had it all. Great job. Wonderful fiancé. Amazing friends. Loving family. Life was perfect. Out of nowhere, her life fell apart. Rather than dealing with it all, she packs a bag and leaves New York behind. By a twist of fate, she ends up in Nels Cove, Colorado and decides to stay.

Moving to the country is just what she needed. The quaint town, the countryside, and the people are perfect, well most of the people. Chase Archibald is an arrogant ass who grates on her nerves but he also sets her ablaze.

*********

Chase Archibald is Nels Cove royalty. Everyone loves him and his family, well everyone except one person: Emerson James. She is the first person to call him out and not fall at his feet. That pisses him off but at the same time she sparks something inside of him; he can’t stop thinking about her.

Eventually, Emerson lowers her guard and Chase wins her over. Just as she begins to feel like herself again, her past and present collide and she will finally have face what she ran from.

*********

Out of nowhere, she makes a decision but does she make the right one?

DL Gallie is from Queensland, Australia, but she’s lived in many different places all over the world, including the UK and Canada. She currently resides in Central Queensland with her husband and two munchkins. She and her husband have been together since she was sixteen, and although they drive each other crazy at times, she couldn’t imagine her life without him.

Shortly after her son was born, DL began reading again. With encouragement from her husband, she picked up the pen and started writing, and now the voices in her head won’t shut up.

DL enjoys listening to music, drinking white wine in the summer, red wine in the winter, and beer all year round. She’s also never been known to turn down a cocktail, especially a margarita.

The door has just closed behind me when I see the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. She’s walking down Main Street and I immediately notice her. How could you not? She is absolutely stunning. She’s wearing a yellow sundress. Her red hair is half up and half down and it’s blowing in the wind. Never have I seen someone so breathtaking. She went into Tiff’s and I decide to head there myself; after all Tiff makes the best muffins in three counties. It’s time for my afternoon coffee break and a guy has to eat, that’s what I tell myself as I walk across the street. In truth, I want to see this beauty up close and in person.

Walking in, my eyes immediately find her in the back corner booth…my back corner booth, I think to myself as I walk further inside. My eyes are steadfastly locked on her as I head toward the counter. I’m not looking and don’t see Jolene coming in my direction; her arms full of orders, we collide with each other. The plates she carries go flying and shatter on the floor with a loud crash.

“Chase, I’m so sorry,” she says as she drops to her knees to start cleaning up the mess. Tiff appears and begins to berate Jolene for being clumsy, again. Jolene isn’t cut out for waitressing, but Tiff is too kind to get rid of her. Before I have a chance to say anything, the hottie I’d come in to see is on her knees helping Jolene clean up. My mind immediately imagines her leaning forward, unzipping my slacks, and her pert, pouty lips wrapping around my cock. My deviant thoughts are thwarted when I hear her voice, laced with anger say, “It wasn’t her fault. This guy here wasn’t watching where he was going and bumped into her.” She pauses and looks up at me. “You can always help clean up the mess you made,” she sassily says, her eyes shooting daggers at me.

“Excuse me?” I growl, no one speaks to me like that.

“You heard me, grab the broom from the lady there and help us clean this up,” she responds as she picks up a broken plate and places it into the bin that magically appeared.

“Do you know who I am?” I ask, shocked that someone would speak to me like that.

“I don’t care if you are the president, you will help clean up the mess that you caused.”

Everyone around us gasps. No one has ever spoken to me like that before, and with this one conversation, this little spitfire has piqued my interest. Turning around, I grab the broom from Tiff and begin to help sweep up the mess. Within a few minutes, the debris is all cleaned up. Grabbing the broom from me, she hands it back to Tiff before she makes her way back ‘my’ booth. I watch her walk away, while everyone in the café has gone back to his or her business. Shaking my head, I continue to the counter and order my usual. While I wait, I stalk over to the woman who has garnered my attention. As I sit across from her, I stare at her. I don’t think I have ever been drawn to someone like I am to this woman. “Well, aren’t you a little spitfire?”

Her head pops up from the book she is reading and her cobalt blue eyes glare at me. “Excuse me?” she says.

“I didn’t stutter. I said you are a little spitfire.”

“Did you just quote Major Payne to me?”

Shaking my head, I laugh that she picked up on the movie reference, not my questioning. “Well, I guess I did.” Putting my hand out, I say, “Chase Archibald, nice to meet you.”

She hesitantly looks at my hand before placing hers in mine. Her hand is soft and delicate, compared to mine. “Hi, I’m Emerson,” she replies, immediately withdrawing her hand as if touching me will cause her to catch some horrendous disease, or worse, man germs. She drops her hand back into her lap and goes back to reading, effectively dismissing me.

Never has a woman acted like this around me, usually they fall at my feet, begging me to give them the time of day. This girl intrigues me. “So, to what do we owe the pleasure of your company here in Nels Cove?"

“Well, I’m trying to read while I wait for my late lunch.” She pauses, looking over at me before sassily adding, “but some arrogant ass keeps interrupting me.” Lowering her gaze back to her book once again, she ignores me.

“If you want to see my ass, you just have to ask,” I smugly reply. Her head shoots up and once again she is casting daggers my way. Winking at her, I smile before adding, “So, apart from wanting to see my ass, I’ll ask again. To what do we owe the pleasure of your delightful company in our little town?”

Putting her book down, she stares at me and sighs. “You’re not going to go away until I answer your questions, are you?”

Shaking my head from side to side, I confirm, “Nope.” Flashing her a smile, I wink at her. Again, she rolls her eyes, but I’m sure I see a hint of interest flickering there. This woman in front of me intrigues me, even though she’s being blasé and kind of rude, I’m fascinated with her.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m on a road trip,” she huffs. “I was just passing through, but it's so pretty here I’ve been here for a week now and I think I might stay a while longer.”

Her response puzzles me. How has she been here a week and I’m just meeting her now? A newbie like her would normally send the gossip mills blazing. I want to know more, but the phone in my pocket vibrates. I dig it out and see that it’s a reminder for a conference call in ten minutes. It’s a call that I had to reschedule and cannot miss. “Well, I guess you are saved by the bell. I hope to see you around, Emerson.”

“Lucky me,” she sarcastically says. She picks up her book and goes back to reading, once again rejecting my advances.

Standing up, I walk over to the counter, grab my waiting coffee and head out. As I walk across the street, I glance over my shoulder and see her staring out the window at me. Lifting my hand, I nod my head, tap my temple, and salute her. From across the road, I can sense her blushing and I think to myself, Game on, Spitfire, game on.